Government Affairs & Communications Associate

Job description

**Help Build Europe's Hypersonic Capability** At **Hypersonica**, we’re redefining what’s possible in European defence technology. We exist to deliver speed, resilience, and technological independence at a pace that sets a new standard. We are a small, elite team working on problems that matter, and solving them fast. By joining **Hypersonica**, you’re not stepping into a predefined role. You’re joining a talent dense environment where every individual shapes the direction of the company. Our philosophy is to hire a small number of exceptional people with broad, deep technical capability, strong judgement, and the ability to operate autonomously. We hire for talent, not rigid boxes. This role represents a business need, but the way it evolves will be shaped by the individual. If you’ve achieved what others said was impossible, or you bring a unique combination of skills that doesn’t fit a traditional mould, we want to hear from you. The work you do here directly contributes to Europe’s technological independence. ### What you’ll do - Support the Government Affairs Director, UK, and Director of Communications across day-to-day priorities, research, coordination, briefings and execution. - Maintain and improve the stakeholder engagement and tracking system across UK government, Parliament, local authorities, industry, advocates, allies and relevant third parties. - Support stakeholder engagement required to secure and establish Hypersonica’s UK manufacturing presence. - Help develop and execute local political engagement plans around UK site selection, manufacturing expansion and future operational milestones. - Prepare high-quality briefing materials, stakeholder notes, meeting packs, follow-up documents and internal summaries for senior leaders. - Research UK government departments, parliamentary activity, local authorities, defence stakeholders, political developments, policy announcements and industry movements relevant to Hypersonica. - Support engagement with UK government departments, Parliament, local authorities, defence and military stakeholders as relationships develop from early projects into larger programmes. - Help coordinate external events, meetings, site visits, private lunches, roundtables and senior stakeholder engagements. - Support key communications and engagement moments, including UK footprint expansion announcements, contract awards, investment milestones and follow-on communications. - Draft or support external-facing content, stakeholder communications, executive messaging, presentations and short written materials. - Track outcomes and produce simple impact reporting across communications and government affairs activity. - Provide practical coordination support to senior leaders, including some PA-style work where needed: scheduling, logistics, follow-ups, document preparation and stakeholder tracking. - Work closely with Communications, Government Affairs, Business Development, Operations and senior leadership to keep messaging and engagement aligned. ### Who you are - You have 2–4 years’ experience in at least one of the following areas: defence, public affairs, government relations, Parliament or political offices, communications, journalism, media relations or public policy. - You have excellent written communication skills and can produce briefings, stakeholder notes, presentations and external-facing content quickly and clearly. - You are highly organised and able to manage multiple competing priorities without losing detail. - You are comfortable working across different types of work: research one hour, briefing notes the next, stakeholder tracking, event coordination, then comms content. - You are comfortable supporting senior stakeholders and executives, including preparation, coordination and follow-up. - You have strong judgement and understand the importance of discretion when dealing with sensitive topics, senior external stakeholders and national-security-adjacent work. - You are interested in defence, national security, advanced technology, manufacturing and the role of sovereign European capability. - You are not looking for a narrow comms role or a narrow government affairs role. You want breadth, exposure and responsibility. - You are willing to cover practical coordination and PA-style work where needed. ### Desirable - Knowledge of UK government and parliamentary processes. - Experience in a defence company, public affairs consultancy, communications agency, parliamentary office, trade association or policy environment. - Experience supporting senior leaders with briefings, external engagement, stakeholder management or events. - Experience producing written materials for government, policy, media, industry or executive audiences. - Understanding of the UK defence ecosystem, MOD, Parliament, local government, industrial policy or national-security debates. - Experience working in a fast-moving company where priorities change quickly. ### What we offer - A mission-driven environment working on one of Europe’s most ambitious defence technology programmes. - Direct exposure to senior leaders, government affairs, strategic communications and major company milestones. - High ownership from day one, with real responsibility and visible impact. - A fast-paced, technically rigorous environment where decisions are made quickly and execution matters. - The chance to help shape how Hypersonica engages government, industry, media and strategic stakeholders as we scale UK operations. - A culture built around clarity, integrity, high standards and practical problem solving. - Competitive compensation, including share options. - The opportunity to help build a sovereign European hypersonic capability at a pivotal stage of company growth. ### Security and eligibility Due to the nature of the work with the UK MOD and government stakeholders, applicants must be eligible to work in the UK and able to meet relevant security requirements. You must be eligible for UK Security Clearance (SC).